A starting price is not what you want for the item. It is the first thing you say about it, and the room replies. Treating it as a decision rather than an opening is the most common pricing mistake there is.
What a low start says
I am confident this will find its level.
It invites people in. More bidders means more competition, and competition is what actually sets a high price — not your starting number. A low start on a desirable item routinely ends higher than a high start on the same item, because the early bidders stay and keep bidding.
It also says, truthfully, that you are willing to let the room decide. That reads as confidence rather than desperation, which surprises people.
The risk is real though: in a thin room, a low start ends low. That is the trade, and it is why a reserve exists.
What a high start says
I know what this is worth and I am not discovering it with you.
That is sometimes exactly right — for a known object with a known price, where you are not looking for a contest, just a buyer.
But a high start on an uncertain item says something you may not intend: that there is nothing to find out here. People who would have bid ₹400 and then ₹900 in increments never bid at all, because the first step is already past their instinct. One bidder at your number is not an auction, and no competition means no chance of the number you were hoping for.
What no start says
A starting price of almost nothing with a reserve underneath is a specific move: maximum invitation, with a floor. It works, and it is honest as long as the reserve is sensible. Bidding can run under a reserve; the item just does not change hands.
How the room answers
Silence is information. No bids at your start means your start was your answer, not an opening. Relist lower rather than relisting the same number and hoping for a different room.
A fast early run means you started below where the room was. That is usually fine — the run is the mechanism working.
Two bidders trading increments is the best outcome available. The price they reach is a real number, discovered rather than guessed.
The increment matters more than people think
Left alone, the step between bids is 5% of your starting price, with a floor of ₹10. A start that is too high makes every step large, which ends a contest early. A sensible start keeps the steps small enough that two people can keep going.
What to actually do
Look at what similar things finished at, not what they were listed at. Asking prices are opinions; finished prices are facts.
Start below your expectation and put the floor in the reserve. This is the default advice for a reason.
Say why in the description if your start is high. A high start with a stated reason is a different sentence from a high start with none.
Questions people ask
Does a low start make my item look cheap?
The finished price is what people see. A low start that ran to a good number reads as a desirable item.
Can I change the price after bidding starts?
No. That is the point of the clock, and it is why the opening number deserves thought.
What if I genuinely cannot sell below a number?
Then set it as the reserve and start low. You never have to sell below a price you set.
More: how to price for auction, how an auction finds a price, what is this worth, the condition discount.